Graduate Learning Overseas (GLO)
Conducted by the Institute of International Education (IIE) with funding from the U.S. Department of Education's office of International and Foreign Language Education (IFLE), the Graduate Learning Overseas (GLO) project is the first-ever national survey of U.S. institutions regarding their graduate students’ educational activities overseas.
Research shows that international educational experiences develop key skills related to global citizenship, intercultural communication, and language competency. Research also shows that enrollment in U.S. graduate education is on the rise. However, the full scale and scope of U.S. graduate experiences abroad remains unknown. A knowledge gap exists – graduate students’ activities overseas remain “invisible” in the national discourse on U.S. study abroad.
The Knowledge Gap
Due to institution-level reporting challenges, only a small fraction of graduate students’ overseas education is captured in existing data collection efforts, creating a gap in knowledge about their experiences and impact.
This knowledge gap diminishes the ability of higher education institutions, researchers, and policymakers to 1) assess how well U.S. higher education institutions prepare graduates for today’s global workforce, and 2) inform the development of programs and policies.
Contribution and Impact of GLO
IIE’s GLO Survey will:
- Provide publicly available data to better support graduate student education and training
- Identify and establish best practices in data collection related to overseas experiences
- Increase knowledge on existing connections between the U.S. and other countries, and on the impact graduate overseas experiences have on the home campus
GLO Plan of Action
GLO consists of three distinct phases, each lasting one year: